Assigned to JUD                                                                                                          AS PASSED BY THE SENATE

ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Forty-seventh Legislature, Second Regular Session

AMENDED

FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1164

aggravated assault; suffocation and strangulation

Purpose

            Classifies suffocation and strangulation in a domestic violence situation as aggravated assault.

Background

            Assault, a misdemeanor, means intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causing physical injury to another person, intentionally placing another person in reasonable apprehension of imminent physical injury or knowingly touching another person with the intent to injure, insult or provoke (A.R.S. § 13-1203).

            Aggravated assault, a felony, involves committing assault under 16 established conditions, including: 1) if the person is 18 years of age or older and commits the assault upon a child of 15 years of age or under; 2) if the person uses a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument; and 3) if the person causes serious physical injury to another (A.R.S. § 13-1204). 

            Assault and aggravated assault, in addition to other specified offenses, constitute domestic violence if the defendant and the victim have a special relationship, including:1) they are or were married, live or lived together or have a child together; 2) the victim is a specified relative of either the defendant or the defendant’s spouse, such as the parent, grandparent or sibling; or 3) the victim is a child who lives or lived with the defendant and is blood-related to the defendant’s former spouse or to a person who lives or lived with the defendant.  Domestic violence offenses have the same classification as the underlying offense, but may have enhanced penalties.

            The Arizona Coalition Against Domestice Violence reports that some victims of domestic violence are subject to strangulation and suffocation.  The dictionary definition of strangulation is the serious or fatal obstruction of normal breathing and to suffocate means to stop respiration or deprive of oxygen. 

            There may be a fiscal impact associated with this legislation due to an increased number of persons sentenced to the Arizona Department of Corrections, or sentenced to a county jail as a term of probation.

Provisions

1. Expands the definition of aggravated assault to include assault in a domestic violence situation committed by conduct that:

a) impedes normal breathing or circulation of the blood by the application of pressure on another person’s throat or neck.

b) impedes normal breathing by the blocking of the nose or mouth of another person.

2. Classifies the new aggravated assault offenses as class 5 felonies if the victim is 15 years of age or older.

3. Classifies the new aggravated assault offenses as class 4 felonies if the victim is under 15 years old and prescribes a presumptive sentence of 10 years, which can be aggravated or mitigated by up to 5 years.  The person is not eligible for release until the sentence has been served, except as specifically established by statute. 

4. Requires that persons sentenced to probation for either of the new forms of aggravated assault serve at least 30 days in the county jail as a condition of probation.

5. Specifies the probationary jail term does not apply to persons sentenced to the Arizona Department of Corrections, and that the jail term cannot be deferred, deleted or otherwise suspended and must commence on the date of sentencing.

6. Exempts peace officers, correctional officers and detention officers, while executing official duties, from the new aggravated assault offenses.

7. Makes technical and conforming changes.

8. Becomes effective on the general effective date.

Amendments Adopted by Committee

· Adds the requirement of a jail term if probation is given and makes conforming changes.

Amendments adopted by Committee of the Whole

1. Limits the new forms of aggravated assault to domestic violence situations.

2. Alters the classification and penalties of the new aggravated assault offenses.

3. Exempts from the new types of aggravated assault certain officers while in the line of duty.

4. Makes technical changes.

Senate Action

JUD                 2/6/06     DPA     6-0-2-0

3rd Read         3/14/06                20-9-0

Prepared by Senate Research

April 3, 2006

JE/LB/ac